Child obesity rates in the US have plummeted, a study has revealed, raising hopes that one of the fattest countries on earth might just be turning a corner in the obesity epidemic.
The report, which will be published in The Journal of the American Medical Association says the number of 2 to 5-year-olds who are overweight in the US has fallen by 43 per cent over the past decade from 14 per cent in 2004 to 8 per cent in 2012.
The demographic is an important one in the weight-loss battle as once children become obese they are more likely to stay obese into adulthood and have an increased risk of developing short and long-term health conditions such as Type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
“This is the first time we’ve seen any indication of any significant decrease in any group,” Cynthia L. Ogden, a researcher for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the lead author of the report, told The New York Times.
While the figures are not reflected more broadly, researchers are enthusiastic about them being a good signal in the country’s ongoing fight to overcome its addictions to sugarry drinks and super-sized meals.
Ruth Loos, a professor of preventive medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai hospital in New York told The New York Times that the 2- to 5-year-olds “might be riding a new wave,” in which changes in habits and environment over many years are finally sinking in.
“We’ve been trying to educate parents and families about healthy lifestyles, and maybe it’s finally having an effect,” she said.
The obesity epidemic is a global phenomenon and it is considered the number one most serious health issue facing the developed world.
Monash University’s Obesity and Diabetes Institute states that more than 40 million children under the age of five were overweight in 2010.
An Australian study, published in the journal PLOS One last year was the first to track rates of obesity in Australian children over time. The study found that at four years old 15 per cent of children were overweight and 5 per cent were obese.
